ISCAS cannot help with

NHS patients treated in an ISCAS subscriber hospital

NHS patients receiving care in an ISCAS member hospital are entitled to use the providers’ local complaints procedure (Stages 1 and 2) but then have recourse to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) as a third stage and cannot be dealt with by ISCAS.

ISCAS cannot deal with complaints about the following types of healthcare providers

A Private Patient Unit at an NHS hospital or an NHS GP that have seen you privately – patients should complain directly to the organisation.

A private hospital or clinic that is not a member of ISCAS – patients should complain directly to the organisation.

Types of complaints that ISCAS cannot consider

Complaints about alleged clinical negligence and causality. These should be dealt with through the legal process.

Professional concerns about a doctor, nurse or other healthcare professional. These are dealt with by the relevant professional regulator.

Complaints about treatment that was received over six months previously or if it has been longer than six months before you discovered that there was something to complain about. This time limit may be extended in exceptional circumstances, as long as it is still possible to investigate the complaint.

Outcomes that ISCAS cannot offer

ISCAS cannot suspend the registration of a doctor or any other health professional.

ISCAS cannot offer revision surgery or other remedial procedure as an outcome of your complaint.

ISCAS does not conduct investigatory visits of member hospital as a regulator does.

ISCAS and PIP Implants

The ISCAS Code of Practice for handling complaints aims to bring resolution for complainants at the final stage of the complaints process. It does not deal with issues of legal liability nor operate as a compensation scheme.

It is not appropriate to bring specific individual complaints about the use of the PIP implant by a provider or surgeon direct to ISCAS. All healthcare providers who subscribe to ISCAS are understood to follow current advice and guidance to manage patients’ concerns. If they receive a complaint about their work which falls within the ISCAS Code then they will follow the Code protocols.

If a patient wishes to complain about the PIP device as such, this is a matter to be referred to the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) for resolution because the use of these implants was governed by the MHRA and providers follow the advice issued by MHRA.